Compassion

Ms. Mary M. Smithe of Barrington Hills expressed her sympathy for Ryan White in her letter of April 25, but she withheld compassion for AIDS victims who were infected through sexual contact or by sharing contaminated needles. These people were warned about how the disease is transmitted, she contends. As she mourns Ryan White's death, she insensitively denounces the suffering of thousands of other AIDS victims because she thinks they could have avoided getting the disease. Millions die annually from heart disease.

By Allison Bond MD NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women who are kind to themselves in tough situations may have an easier time dealing with hot flashes during menopause, a recent study from Australia found. Women who ranked higher on a measure of self-compassion reported that hot flashes interfered less with their daily lives than women who were harder on themselves. Many women experience hot flashes during menopause. The sudden fluctuations in the...

I am an Eagle Scout. I grew up with the Scout Oath: "On my honor, I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law. To help other people at all times. To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight. " The Scout Law added further obligations: "A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent. " All of the Eagle Scouts I know continue to try and live their lives according to...

A hypothetical scenario: Your little boy lies in a hospital bed, stricken by a mysterious, potentially fatal disease. You are frightened and in despair. But your community rallies around you. Soon, the whole town is talking about your ordeal. Neighbors you've never spoken to send cards. Co-workers you've never socialized with send encouraging text messages. None of it changes the objective fact of your son's condition, doesn't kill a virus, lessen a fever or ease...

Dear Miss Manners: I am a 62-year-old woman and was in a large university hospital visiting a friend who was being moved into hospice care. There were several people waiting for an elevator on that floor. I saw a woman about 30 years of age quietly weeping. I wanted to put my arm around her, but I didn't. I couldn't even find a tissue in my purse to offer her. Should I have put my arm around her and said something? Not one of the many people waiting or in the elevator...

Here's a question. If -- and this is a big if -- the United States could dispatch a swarm of heretofore secret super-drones to find and kill every member of the Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram, would you be in favor of doing it? I'll even modify it for those of you who are squeamish about killing terrorists who slaughter men, women and children with abandon. What if the drones could simply paralyze the terrorists long enough for the U.S., or the Nigerians or some duly...

Today's Birthday (03/28/14). It's a banner year for artistic expression and creativity. Pour emotion and passion into your work, and your career grows in satisfaction and profit. Improve your home's beauty and functionality, for a springtime social flurry. After August, reign with compassion. Play with young people. The more fun the game, the greater reward. Hone in on what you love. To get the advantage, check the day's rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging. Aries (March 21-April 19)

Workers at the Copenhagen Zoo on Sunday killed Marius, a young male giraffe, with a gun to the head and harvested his flesh for research and for (big) cat food. The skinning, carving and eating were all done in full public view. While a zoo spokesman said the spectators were "very enthusiastic," the reaction elsewhere sounded like, well, the cry of a wounded animal. Many animal lovers were shocked by the blasting and butchering of one of these impressive and winsome animals merely because its...

Even with the best of maps, you may never know where you're going until you get there. When Barrie Jean Borich came to the end of writing her most recent book, "Body Geographic" ("a stunningly original memoir," said the Kirkus review), she had no plans to leave Minneapolis, for which she had left her native Chicago three decades ago. Then came news from a friend about a teaching opportunity at DePaul University. In 2012 she returned to Chicago to live full time and teach creative writing in...

Vanderbilt handles Houston in BBVA Compass Bowl BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Each team won a half in the BBVA Compass Bowl at Legion Field on Saturday, but Vanderbilt's half was a touch better than Houston's. The Commodores jumped out to a 24-point lead at halftime, weathered a Houston storm and emerged with a 41-24 victory before a crowd of 42,717. The winning points came on a 21-yard run by Brian Kimbrow with 9:28 remaining. "We were told by the ESPN people that the...

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Each team won a half in the BBVA Compass Bowl at Legion Field on Saturday, but Vanderbilt's half was a touch better than Houston's. The Commodores jumped out to a 24-point lead at halftime, weathered a Houston storm and emerged with a 41-24 victory before a crowd of 42,717. The winning points came on a 21-yard run by Brian Kimbrow with 9:28 remaining. "We were told by the ESPN people that the ratings had gone down so we wanted to spike them back up by...